Research News

The recent outbreak of Nipah virus in Kerala, which follows one that occurred in 2018, has brought the focus back on bats which are known to host the virus. Using machine learning - a form of artificial intelligence (AI) – an international group of scientists has identified bat species with the potential to host Nipah virus.

In a major collaborative effort, researchers at UNMC and the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University (LKSOM) have for the first time eliminated replication-competent HIV-1 DNA -- the virus responsible for AIDS -- from the genomes of living animals. The study, reported online July 2 in the journal Nature Communications, marks a critical step toward the development of a possible cure for human HIV infection.

New results of a 65-year follow-up study of nearly 7,000 Norwegian patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) suggest that patients may have a greater overall risk of developing cancer than the general population, with an especially high risk of cancer in respiratory organs, urinary organs and the central nervous system.

Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Indore have found that piperine, a natural alkaloid present in black pepper, can be used as a therapeutic agent against neurodegenerative disorder, Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS). 

Bioactive adhesive tissue patches are emerging as an alternative to suturing for deep cuts and wounds. Collagen-based adhesive gels are commonly used, but these patches are expensive and may cause an immune reaction as collagen is derived from animal sources.

A Washington State University research team has developed a drug delivery system using curcumin, the main ingredient in the spice turmeric, that successfully inhibits bone cancer cells while promoting growth of healthy bone cells.

A class of immune cells called innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) mediates the body’s initial defense against tuberculosis (TB), according to a report published online today in Nature. Boosting this response may provide a new approach to developing treatments and vaccines against TB, which causes more deaths worldwide than any other single infectious disease. The research was supported in part by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a component of the National Institutes of Health.  It was conducted by scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis in collaboration with scientists at the Africa Health Research Institute in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and other institutions.

Researchers at the Department of Biosciences, Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) have tested a formulation combining silver nonoparticles with Ampicillin, one of the early antibiotics, that can kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria, a major threat to public health, effectively.

Youth who said they were teased or ridiculed about their weight increased their body mass by 33% more each year, compared to a similar group who had not been teased, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The findings appear to contradict the belief that such teasing might motivate youth to change their behavior and attempt to lose weight. The study was conducted by Natasha A. Schvey, Ph.D., of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, and colleagues at NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. It appears in Pediatric Obesity.